Emissions from coal were the lowest for any first half since the data series began in 2010.
Finland cut its emissions by 11.8 percent, even though electricity use rose.
Electric cars made up 20.7 percent of all new cars in the EU, up from 15.6 percent the year before.
The EU's carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels fell by 20.9 million metric tons in the first half of 2026. That is 2 percent less than in the same period of 2025. In total, the EU emitted 1,040.8 million metric tons of carbon dioxide from January to June. This is according to a new analysis by CREA, the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air.
In the first half of 2025, emissions rose by 1.6 percent. Now they are falling again. Even after CREA adjusts for the effect of the weather, the decline is 1.9 percent.
Emissions from coal fell by 1.3 percent to 234.1 million metric tons. That is the lowest level for a first half since CREA's data series began in 2010.
Globally, emissions have almost stopped growing. We have previously reported that global emissions rose by only 0.2 percent in the first half of 2026.
Oil accounted for the largest drop
Emissions from oil fell by 21.0 million metric tons, or 4.3 percent. The biggest decline was in industry and buildings. There, emissions from oil fell by 10.8 percent to 103.9 million metric tons of carbon dioxide, the lowest level since the data series began in 2010. That decline alone accounts for about three-fifths of the EU's total emissions reduction.
Almost all of the decline came between March and June. By then, the Hormuz crisis had restricted the supply of oil and pushed up fuel prices. At the same time, industrial production in the EU was essentially flat, with a decrease of 0.2 percent. Lower production therefore does not explain the lower emissions.
In total, emissions from industry and buildings fell by 18.0 million metric tons, or 3.8 percent. That is the largest decrease of any sector. Adjusted for weather, the decline is 4.9 percent.
Deliveries of heating oil fell by 21.9 percent to 14.3 million metric tons. That is the lowest level for the first half since Eurostat's data series began in 2009. In April and May, deliveries were 41 percent lower than the year before. In Austria they fell by 69 percent, in Germany by 63 percent and in Belgium by 52 percent.
Record for wind and solar
Wind and solar power generated 458 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity in the first half of the year. That is a record and equals about a third of the EU's electricity. For the third year in a row, wind and solar produced more electricity in the first half than coal and gas combined. This year the gap was 91 TWh. Wind power grew by 8.1 percent and solar power by 9.8 percent.
Power generation was the only sector where emissions rose, by 2 percent, after a cold January when more gas was used. According to CREA's lead author Luke Wickenden, wind and solar held down the increase. Had coal and gas instead produced the extra electricity that wind and solar provided this year, the increase would have been six times larger, he says in a press release.
Over the longer term, the power sector is the largest source of emission cuts in the EU. Since the first half of 2019, emissions from power generation have fallen by an average of 6.8 percent per year, a total of 146 million metric tons. Coal power has fallen by 44 percent over the same period.
Less diesel and more electric cars
Emissions from domestic transport fell by 2 percent, or 7.3 million metric tons. It is the fourth first half in a row with a decline. Diesel deliveries fell by 3.4 percent to 90.5 million metric tons. That is the lowest level for January to June since 2020.
Diesel was already falling in January and February, before the Hormuz crisis. According to CREA, less traffic in Europe in the second quarter and more people buying electric cars also contributed. Battery electric cars made up 20.7 percent of all new cars registered in the EU in the first half of 2026. A year earlier, the share was 15.6 percent. The same trend can be seen worldwide, where gasoline cars now account for less than half of car sales.
Finland cut the most
CREA reports results for 16 member states. Finland cut its emissions the most, by 11.8 percent. Nuclear power produced more electricity, while the use of coal, oil and gas fell. This happened even though electricity use rose by 6.3 percent during a cold start to the year.
Bulgaria cut its emissions by 10.1 percent as hydropower recovered and coal power declined. France cut its emissions by 7.4 percent. Germany and France had the largest cuts measured in tons, at 9.1 and 8.6 million metric tons respectively. In both countries, the drop came mainly from lower fossil fuel use in industry, buildings and transport.
Sweden is not included in the comparison. That is because data on solid fuels is missing for January to May 2026.
How CREA calculates
CREA calculates emissions using emission factors from the IPCC, the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. These are applied to Eurostat's monthly statistics on fossil fuel use. The calculation covers carbon dioxide from combustion in power generation, industry, buildings and domestic transport. International aviation and shipping, industrial process emissions and land use are not included. CREA's previous first-half estimates have all been within 1 percent of the figures published later. The full analysis is available in the report.
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